How to Allow Anonymous Comments in Elgg 1.8

For some time, several Elgg users were looking for a way for guests (unregistered users) to comment on the content posted in their Elgg network. For that reason, in this guide I will give a step by step guide on how to allow anonymous comments in Elgg 1.8

1. To do this, we will use a community plugin called Speak Freely, which will provide the ability for anonymous (not logged in) users to comment on public content. Download it here

2. After downloading it, upload it to the mod directory of your Elgg site

3. Now, we will activate the plugin. Sign into your Elgg network as an Administrator. Go to the Administration Dashboard and go to Menu “Configure -> Plugins” look for Speak Freely and activate it:

5. You will see a form where you can easily change the default values of the plugin. Here you can change the “Anonymous display name”, “Upload a new icon” for the anonymous user, and also you can add recaptcha to stop spammers (You will need a recaptcha key) when posting anonymous comments or if you prefer you can disable recaptcha. When you are done, click the submit button to save the changes:

6. Now, non-logged in users will see this form if they want to post a comment on public posts:

Using this tool will increase user activity on your Elgg network, since it will allow anyone to comment on public posts without signing in.